Most marketers only scratch the surface of their SEO tools — running keyword checks, site audits, and backlink scans. But hidden beneath the dashboard are features that can give you a serious competitive edge. These “under-the-radar” tools can save time, reveal untapped opportunities, and help you outsmart your competition.
Here’s a breakdown of hidden features in popular SEO tools that you might not be using (but should).
Where to find it: Site Explorer → Content Gap
What it does: Compares your site to competitors and finds keywords they rank for, but you don’t.
Why it’s powerful: It reveals content opportunities you might never have thought of — based on proven ranking data.
Pro tip: Filter results for keywords with low difficulty but high search intent for quick-win content ideas.
Where to find it: Position Tracking → Cannibalization
What it does: Identifies pages on your site competing for the same keyword.
Why it’s powerful: Cannibalization can split your rankings and hurt visibility. This feature pinpoints which URLs to merge, optimize, or redirect.
Pro tip: Consolidate similar pages into one authoritative piece to boost rankings.
Where to find it: Performance → Filter → Custom (Regex)
What it does: Lets you use regular expressions to filter keyword and page data.
Why it’s powerful: Perfect for grouping long-tail queries, branded vs non-branded searches, or tracking seasonal keywords.
Pro tip: Use patterns like .*how.* to find all queries containing “how” for content marketing ideas.
Where to find it: Configuration → Custom → Extraction
What it does: Scrapes specific on-page data (like schema markup, product prices, or meta tags).
Why it’s powerful: Saves hours of manual checking for technical SEO audits.
Pro tip: Use it to verify structured data across thousands of pages in minutes.
Where to find it: Link Explorer → Link Intersect
What it does: Shows sites that link to your competitors but not you.
Why it’s powerful: A shortcut to discovering high-quality backlink opportunities.
Pro tip: Reach out to these sites with relevant, high-value content to earn backlinks quickly.
Where to find it: Admin → Data Streams → Enhanced Measurement
What it does: Automatically tracks scroll depth, outbound clicks, video engagement, and more — without extra code.
Why it’s powerful: Gives you behavior insights without relying on developers.
Pro tip: Pair this with Looker Studio dashboards to spot engagement patterns that lead to conversions.
Where to find it: Content Editor → NLP → Entities
What it does: Analyzes Google’s NLP database to identify key entities (people, places, topics) relevant to your target keyword.
Why it’s powerful: Helps you naturally include semantically related terms for better topical authority.
Pro tip: Use NLP entities to make your content sound authoritative without keyword stuffing.
Where to find it: Rank Math → General Settings → 404 Monitor
What it does: Tracks broken links and lets you set up instant redirects.
Why it’s powerful: Preserves link equity and improves user experience without complex server edits.
Pro tip: Combine with Google Search Console crawl error reports for a complete fix strategy.
